Culture & Language Department
PRESERVING OUR HERITAGE
Discover the programs and initiatives dedicated to preserving, teaching, and revitalizing Kanien’kéha, culture, and traditions for present and future generations.
Ionkwateriwaièn:ni
Mission Statement
The Culture and Language Department’s mission is to preserve, teach and revitalize our language, culture and history through sponsored language classes and cultural events.
Programs & Services
The Culture and Language Department carries out a variety of activities related to cultural revitalization, including advocacy work, repatriation initiatives, and language and culture workshops. Various language and culture revitalization programs are being funded through the First Peoples’ Cultural Council and other heritage grants.
Language Revitalization Program
With just about 140 speakers left in Kanehsatà:ke, the preservation and revitalization of the Kanien’kéha language is an ongoing and evolving effort rooted in the dedication of our community. For generations, Kanien’kehá:ka knowledge holders, educators, and language advocates have worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen our language in the face of its decline.
In 1970, Kanien’kéha was formally introduced into the education system as a direct response to the erosion of the language. Kanehsatà:ke teachers joined Kahnawà:ke educators in a Kanien’kéha Language Teacher Program, laying the foundation for local language instruction. By 1971, Kanien’kéha was taught for the first time in Kanehsatà:ke schools, later expanding into the elementary school curriculum..
Weekly Language Classes
Since 2023, language classes are offered at the Cultural Center every Fridays from noon until 2pm, to all levels of learners: Beginners, Intermediate or Advanced. Classes are free, and open to community members only.
To register and attend weekly classes, please contact
Resources to learn Kanien’kéha online
The Kanien’kéha language is an invaluable gift from the Creator, and we must preserve, promote, and use it in daily life to ensure its survival for future generations. Several tools are available online to begin learning or to perfect your knowledge of the language.
FirstVoices
FirstVoices is a free, Indigenous-led online platform that supports the documentation, preservation, and learning of Indigenous languages, giving communities an interactive digital space to upload community-created content like alphabets, dictionaries, audio recordings, songs, stories, words, and phrases.
Kontinónhstats | The MLCA website
Kontinónhstats’ mission is to preserve, revitalize, and strengthen the Kanien’kéha language as a living language used in everyday life. Through cultural events, storytelling, and multimedia resources, histories, legends, and contemporary experiences are shared, in Kanien’kéha, making learning tools available to support language transmission and cultural knowledge.
Repatriation Program
The Repatriation Program focuses on the return of Kanien’kehá:ka ancestral belongings to their rightful caretakers and communities. Repatriation is a vital act of cultural restoration, grounded in respect for Indigenous sovereignty, knowledge systems, and responsibilities to past and future generations. Through this program, sacred and cultural items are brought home so they may once again fulfill their roles as living carriers of history, law, language, and identity.
The Language and Culture Department’s team is currently involved in a number of engagements on repatriation as part of its responsibilities, and updates the community regularly on progress made.
The Two-Dog Wampum Belt
Tsi Ronterihwanónhnha ne Kanien’kéha | Language and Culture Centre), the Mohawk Language Custodian Association, and the Mohawk Council of Kanehsatà:ke worked collaboratively with McCord Stewart Museum and McGill University to secure the return of the Two-Dog Wampum Belt in 2025. This partnership marked the beginning of a broader effort to bring home ancestral artifacts through respectful dialogue, shared expertise, and a formal de-acquisition process.
For generations, Indigenous communities have worked to reclaim their cultural practices. Countless cultural belongings were removed through colonial practices, including wampum belts, pottery, jewelry, tobacco pouches, and other sacred items. The Two-Dog Wampum Belt is among the most significant of these objects. Dating back to the 18th century, it affirms the sanctity of Kanehsatà:ke’s traditional territory and embodies Kanien’kehá:ka law, diplomacy, and responsibility to the land.
For more than a century, the belt was held outside the community, but through the leadership of the organizations involved and with the unwavering support of community members, the Two-Dog Wampum Belt has now been rightfully returned home. The return of the Two-Dog Wampum Belt stands as a powerful example of what is possible through community leadership: Today, the belt is cared for in accordance with our values and protocols, ensuring its protection, preservation, and transmission of knowledge for generations to come.
Read more about the return of the Two-Dog Wampum Belts HERE
Cultural Programming
Workshops at the Cultural Center
Tsi Ronterihwanónhha ne Kanien’kéha | Cultural Center is the heart of our community’s culture and language work. It is where the language breathes and grows, through classes, cultural workshops, and events that help all generations reconnect with the language, ceremonies, and each other.
A rich offering of workshops is available for community members. Registrations are required to attend the workshops.